The transgender community has always been under-served in motion pictures and has rarely been the subject of a major narrative film. Sean Baker's latest film "Tangerine" is a riotous drama that observes sex work, friendship, and love and includes strong performances from its two transgenders stars.

"Tangerine" tells the story of a transgender woman Sin-Dee (Kitana Kiki Rodriguez), a woman recently released from jail who discovers that her boyfriend Chester (James Ransone) is cheating on her. What ensues is a cat and mouse chase on Christmas Day in which Sin-Dee searches for him and finds the woman he cheated with.

As Sin-Dee's story unfolds, Alexandra (Mya Taylor), her friend, follows her and also goes through a series of wild experiences that include getting ripped off by a customer and singing at a jazz club.

As these two characters walk along the street of Los Angeles, Baker introduces a third storyline. Razmik (Karren Karagulian), an Armenian taxi driver who drives through picking up drunk passengers, wild woman and sex workers. Razmik remains a mystery for half of the movie and it interesting how Baker develops his character all while inside a taxi.

But what makes this film so thrilling is how Baker connects these three plots and goes full circle by the end of the film. Razmik, Sin-Dee and Alexander are connected in some way and in turn are also all connected to the mysterious Chester. Chester, for his part, is spoken about throughout the film but the character remains a mystery.

"Tangerine" also works because of its tone and rhythm. While the streets of L.A. that Baker explores are some of the grittier and deplorable areas, never does the director revert to the tired moody backgrounds or desaturated look. Instead the film always maintains colorful hues that include lots of orange and fuchsia. The upbeat tone is also helped as the characters themselves are overdramatic and are always involved in extreme situations.

One of the most hilarious moments in the film is when Sin-Dee finds Dinah, the girl Chester cheated with. Sin-Dee enters a hotel filled with a number of sex workers and grabs Dinah by her hair taking her out of the hotel. Not only are the customer's reaction hilarious but Sin-Dee and Dinah's interactions create an exaggerated, but engaging moment. Another scene that maintains the film's lightness is when Alexandra makes fun of her customer's private parts. It may sound disgusting but the delivery is sarcastic and maintains the realism of the situation.

The rhythm of the film also provides for the light heartedness. Baker reverts to quick cutting and Steadicams that allow the audience to follow each character. His use of music also allows the movie to feel exciting and without a dull moment.

The performances of course are all top notch. Rodriguez's Sin-Dee is hilarious, touching and unhinged. Taylor's Alexandra adds a more subdued touch to the film even if she is also emotional and over the top. Karagulian's Razmik is the most tragic of characters in this film as he must struggle with his sexual conflicts and he adds the gravitas and drama to this riotous film.

Meanwhile, Ransone's Chester is comical and bad-mouthed.

"Tangerine" broke out at the Sundance Film Festival not only because it is a great film but because it was shot on the iPhone. Most will be curious to see how Baker pulled this off. The film does look digital and some shots are very obviously shot on the phone.

However, what makes this film compelling is not the technology behind it. It is story that perfectly balances comedy and drama and provides for an exciting 90 minutes.

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